Stories We Become
A COURSE by Elena Vasileva
REHEARSING REGENERATIVE FUTURES
What if the stories we live by could shape the futures we want to see?
Over the course of 8 weeks, we gather in a co-creative rehearsal space where imagination meets action. Through the regenerative cycle of Rooting → Composting → Planting → Weaving → Flourishing → Harvesting, you’ll explore, experiment and co-create narratives that guide your work, your communities, and the systems you touch.
Course begins on May 3rd 2026
Why This Course Exists
We are living in an age of constant information, acceleration and fragmentation. Spaces for slowness, reflection and genuine connection are becoming rare, yet they are exactly what we need most.
Because beyond productivity, beyond growth, beyond external measures of success, there is another form of wealth:
our capacity for awareness, empathy and presence.
And this kind of wealth grows in spaces where we can listen, imagine and make meaning together.
Across disciplines, there is a growing recognition that responding to complex challenges requires more than new solutions. It requires expanding our capacity to imagine and to relate to one another differently in the process.
This course is designed as one of those spaces:
a space for imagination, empathy and connection—
where we can explore new narratives and begin rehearsing more regenerative futures, together.
This Course Is For You If:
You are someone who feels the world is being shaped by outdated or extractive narratives, and you want to explore and craft stories that nurture more regenerative futures.
You are someone who senses that imagination is powerful but often underused in serious conversations, and you want to develop the confidence and tools to use imagination as a method for change.
You are someone who loves stories, literature, or creative expression, and you want to move beyond consumption into actively shaping narratives that influence culture and possibility.
You are someone who works with people whether as a facilitator, coach or educator, and feels traditional approaches are reaching their limits, and you want to bring futures-thinking and regenerative storytelling into your practice.
You are someone who is building something meaningful, perhaps a community initiative, creative project or social impact venture, and you want to anchor your work in a story that inspires participation, belonging, and long-term vision.
You are someone who is drawn to systems thinking, design, or social change, and you want to understand how narratives shape institutions, behaviors, and collective imagination.
You are someone who is curious about futures thinking but finds it often abstract or academic, and you want to experience it as a living, creative practice grounded in storytelling.
You are someone who feels the need for spaces where thoughtful people can explore ideas with curiosity and depth, and you want to connect with a group of peers who are also imagining regenerative futures.
What You Will Walk Away With
A framework for regenerative storytelling that can be applied to creative, professional, or community contexts
Greater futures-thinking literacy — the ability to imagine multiple possible futures and work with uncertainty more creatively.
Practices for expanding imagination and systemic thinking, helping you see connections between stories, culture and the systems we live within.
Tools and exercises for collective storytelling and co-creation, useful for facilitation, leadership, design or creative work.
A personal or professional project developed during the course — whether a story idea, initiative, workshop concept or new direction for your work.
A community of thoughtful peers exploring similar questions about imagination, culture, and the future.
The Journey: A Regenerative Story Cycle
The course follows an ecological rhythm inspired by how living systems grow and transform. Across six weeks, we move through a cycle of reflection, imagination, and integration—exploring how stories can evolve from inherited narratives into living practices.
Week 1 — Rooting
We begin by exploring the stories we inherit.
Through reflective exercises and dialogue, we map the cultural, personal, and systemic narratives that shape how we see the world and our place within it.
Week 2 — Composting
Not every story needs to be carried forward.
This week focuses on recognizing and releasing narratives that no longer serve us, transforming them into fertile ground for new possibilities.
Week 3 — Planting
With space created, we begin planting new seeds of imagination.
Through speculative storytelling, poetry, and futures-thinking exercises, we explore what alternative ways of living, relating, and organizing could look like.
Week 4 — Weaving
Stories do not exist in isolation—they connect people, systems, and cultures.
In this session we weave emerging ideas into relational narratives that consider communities, governance, ecological belonging, and shared futures.
Week 5-6 — Flourishing
Here we explore how stories come alive in practice.
Through rituals, collaborative exercises, and facilitation tools, we experiment with ways stories can strengthen belonging and collective momentum.
Week 7-8 — Harvesting
We conclude by integrating what has emerged.
Participants translate their insights into tangible next steps—whether a creative project, community initiative, facilitation format, or new direction in their work.
Live Weekly Sessions
We meet for 2-hour sessions every Sunday combining conceptual input, guided exercises, and collective discussion.
What the Experience Looks Like
Lecture + Co-Creation Format
Every session begins with a short lecture introducing the weekly theme and frameworks, followed by interactive storytelling exercises, reflection prompts, and collaborative exploration.
60+ Pages Field Guide Course Companion
Participants receive a 60+ pages digital field guide and workspace where you can track reflections, exercises, and insights throughout the course.
Custom-Designed Collaborative Boards
We use shared co-creation boards for mapping ideas, building stories together, and visualizing connections between different perspectives.
Session Recordings
All sessions are recorded so you can revisit the material or catch up if you miss a session.
WhatsApp Community
A dedicated group space allows participants to share insights, ask questions, and stay connected between sessions.
Voices & Inspirations
Throughout the course, we will draw inspiration from voices who have expanded how we think about narrative, relationship, and the future.
Ursula K. Le Guin
Le Guin’s stories invite us to imagine alternative societies and ways of living together. Her work shows how speculative storytelling can question dominant systems and open space for new cultural narratives.
Octavia Butler
Butler’s writing explores how humans adapt, survive, and transform within changing worlds. Her work reminds us that imagination can be both visionary and deeply grounded in social realities.
Mary Oliver
Through her poetry, Oliver reconnects us with attention, humility, and ecological belonging. Her words remind us that imagination is rooted in how we relate to the living world.
adrienne maree brown
Through works such as Emergent Strategy, brown explores how imagination, relationships, and small-scale practices can shape larger systems of change.
Futures Literacy (UNESCO)
The course is also informed by research in futures literacy, a field that explores how developing our capacity to imagine multiple futures helps individuals and communities navigate uncertainty and shape more intentional pathways forward.
Creatives & Writers
You are interested in storytelling as more than a creative output — you want to explore how stories shape culture, possibility, and collective imagination.
Who This Course Is Designed For
Facilitators & Coaches
You hold spaces for others and are looking for new frameworks, exercises, and perspectives to bring imagination and futures-thinking into your work.
Social Impact Entrepreneurs
You are building initiatives that aim to create positive change and want to ground your work in narratives that inspire participation, belonging, and long-term vision.
Designers & Strategists
You are curious about how narratives influence systems, organizations, and decision-making, and how storytelling can become a tool for systemic thinking.
Community Leaders
You work with groups, organizations, or local communities and want to explore how shared stories and rituals can strengthen collective vision and collaboration.
Students & Emerging Thinkers
You are exploring new directions in your field and want to stay connected to conversations around imagination, culture, and the future.
Practical Details
Start Date
The course begins on Sunday, 3rd May.
Session Length
Each session lasts 2 hours, combining short lectures, guided reflection, and co-creation exercises.
Schedule
Live sessions take place once a week (mostly on Sundays, once or twice on a Saturday). Please check out the Course Syllabus for detailed schedule.
Session Recordings
Session Recordings will be available for replay and can be revisited for up to 3 months after completion.
Duration
8 weeks
Investment
1 x 440 EUR or
2 × 220 EUR
Your Facilitator
Elena is a design researcher, storyteller, and facilitator working at the intersection of systems thinking, cultural narratives, and futures imagination.
Her work explores how stories shape the systems we live within—and how consciously working with narrative can open space for more regenerative ways of organizing our lives, communities, and institutions.
With a background in design thinking and spatial planning, Elena brings together methods from design, futures studies, and storytelling to create spaces where people can explore complex questions, expand imagination, and co-create new possibilities. She regularly facilitates workshops and learning experiences that invite participants to reflect on inherited narratives and experiment with alternative futures.
She is also the author of Care-Full Futures, a publication exploring systemic design, cultural narratives, and the role of imagination in shaping more life-centered futures.
Through her work, Elena focuses on one guiding question:
What new stories do we need in order to imagine and practice more regenerative futures?
Got a question about the course?
Schedule a FREE 20-minute call with Elena
Testimonials
✦
What The Community Is Saying
✦
3.000+ Care-Full Futurists
✦
Testimonials ✦ What The Community Is Saying ✦ 3.000+ Care-Full Futurists ✦
